New SIG P250 Pistol at IACP Convention

The Shooting Wire is reporting that SIG SAUER will be releasing a new full-sized pistol, the SIG P250, this weekend at the International Association of Chiefs of Police convention. The firearm has different sized polymer grips/frames that the metal receiver drops down into. A few of these have been seen in some of the consumer gun magazines, but this will be the first time most of us will be able to put our hands on one.

The P250 has a stainless steel chassis that is the serial numbered part considered the firearm for legal purposes. That chassis is the only thing regulated by federal and state laws. So, the owner can literally buy new frames, barrels and slides of any size, caliber and color and swap the chassis into them. So one gun can transform into anything the circumstances may dictate. The owner, meanwhile, can save a lot of cash because one gun can serve many roles.

The P250 works great for law enforcement agencies also, as the single gun can be modified to fit anyone’s hand, regardless of size. Additionally, if the officer changes assignments, the gun can change with them. A patrol officer with a full size pistol can merely reconfigure the same gun for something smaller if he or she moves to an undercover position.

This gun is supposed to have 35-40% fewer parts when compared to other handguns. Generally speaking, that should enhance reliability. Sigs are known to be dependable, accurate firearms. I hope this one continues that tradition.

SIG will offer the P250 in a variety of configurations and calibers. It may not be the perfect gun for all occasions, but it certainly seems that it could be given a couple of moments to swap parts around. Calibers available include 9mm, 40 S&W, 45 ACP and 357 SIG. Magazine capacity is 10 for the 45, 14 for the 40 and 357 and 17 for the 9mm. That, as they say, is a whole lot of felon repellant.

The gun comes with standard or night sights.

SIG SAUER is also releasing the SIG556, a lightweight rifle for the military and law enforcement that is the SIG SAUER platform for the .223/5.56 cartridge. Functionally, it is a bit different from the AR-15, and lighter, but it is designed to accept the AR magazine.

This video from SIG shows all of the unique features of these pistols.

If you own, or are thinking about picking one of the P250 pistols up, make sure you visit our holster page for these guns. We outline all of the holster options currently on the market for these handguns.

Cam & Company Interview

I just recently had the chance to watch the Cam and Company interview with representatives from SIG SAUER at the 2008 SHOT Show.

Cam interviewed SIG SAUER president and CEO Ron Cohen. Cohen and Adam Pinchot demonstrated the new SIG P250 pistol. Cohen emphasized that the P250 is innovative and unique.

“It’s not a gun; it’s a system,” said Cohen. Cohen and Pinchot then demonstrated how easy it is to change grips to fit the user. If you are not familiar with the P250 platform, the serialized receiver drops down into a polymer frame, which comes in three sizes. The different sized frames allows the user to determine which fits his or her hand the best. Switching frames takes only a few seconds.

SIG also offers a short trigger in addition to the standard trigger, creating a total of six different combinations a user can choose from to find the best fit.

What is also interesting about the P250 is that the owner can easily swap between four different calibers: 9mm, .357 Sig, .40 S&W, and .45 ACP. All of this is accomplished with a single receiver.

Cohen stressed that no single gun can fit all people well. As the P250 is not a “single gun,” it allows “the dealer to adapt it to your requirement,” he said. The P250 offers “a suitcase of options” that “lets you change caliber and size at will.”

Cohen said the P250 has a six pound double action trigger with a crisp break. Pinchot stressed that the trigger does not have an unbearable long pull, rather the P250 has a smooth trigger with a quick reset.

Cohen promised “There is no compromise on quality, accuracy, or safety.” Yet, Cohen said the MSRP on the P250 is “around $650,” which makes it one of the least expensive guns Sig Sauer has brought to market. MSRP on SIG’s website lists it at $699.

SIG Announces Two-Tone P250

SIG SAUER announced a new model of P250: a two tone version with a black frame and a stainless slide.

The P250 is a polymer framed semi-automatic pistol that is “modular” in design. The fire control unit sits inside the frame, and can be removed to be inserted into another frame. This allows a single serial numbered part (the actual “gun”) to be configured in one of numerous different ways: different calibers, frame sizes, barrel lengths, etc.

The new SIG P250 adds the option of having a two-tone look for the gun. The frames are all black polymer, though other colors like flat dark earth and olive drab green are certainly possible. The slide is steel with a matte stainless steel finish. The pistol is available in 9mm, .357 SIG, .40 S&W and the big bore .45 ACP.

This two-tone version of the gun is available in the full size, compact and subcompact configurations. This allows the shooter to keep that same clean look no matter what size fits their needs. Nice.

The SIG P250 has a double action only trigger (DAO), which is different than the striker fired system found on many polymer pistols like those from Glock and Springfield Armory.

MSRP on the guns is $655. Expect to pony up additional cash should you want to swap between different calibers and frame sizes.

Update March 2012: The two-tone P250 has been dropped from the SIG SAUER line. Although duo-tone guns tend to be popular with many people, it would seem that this version was not attracting enough sales to make it a viable product in the line. Many other versions of the P250 are still available from SIG, including a version with diamond plating on the slide. This will give the shooter a stainless steel finish, but with the texture more commonly associate with truck tool boxes. I guess there are a lot of shooters who like that kind of thing.

Federal Air Marshals & the P250

In the fall of 2009, the U.S. Federal Air Marshal Service (FAMS) announced the SIG Sauer P250 as the new duty gun for their agents. Chambered in the highly potent .357 Sig cartridge, the FAMS upgraded to the P250 from the SIG Sauer P229. Specifics of the contract were not released by FAMS.

However, in April of 2014, Robert Bray, the director of the Federal Air Marshal Service resigned from that agency amid allegations of illegal gun sales going on during his watch. According to Fox News:

“Poulos [an FAMS supervisor] is accused of using the agency’s federal firearms license and his relationship with gun manufacturer Sig Sauer (sic) to obtain discounted and free guns. He then provided them to high-up agency officials for their personal use..”

According to the same Fox News report, US Representative Richard Hudson (NC) claimed in a letter that:

an Air Marshal supervisor “may have accepted free firearms that were offered because of the employee’s official position in 2010, at a time when such firearms were being tested by FAMS for possible future procurement.”

SIG SAUER representatives declined a request from GunsHolstersAndGear.com to comment on the matter.

Update – October 2014

The P250 pistols have been a very lackluster line of handguns. Many shooters don’t care much for them, and they have failed to catch on in the law enforcement industry. This is too bad as the guns are actually pretty nice shooters.

In 2014, SIG announced the P320 pistols at the SHOT Show. These new guns are striker-fired versions of the P250 handguns. According to many people who have shot the P320, the guns run well but do not offer any tangible benefits to law enforcement agencies or private shooters. I am not aware of any police department that has transitioned to the new P320 guns.

It will be interesting to see if SIG makes any announcements about the P250 or the P320 at the 2015 SHOT Show.

Reader Interactions

Comments

I bought this gun recently and I love it. Trigger pull is nice and easy. The gun is very accurate. The night sights are awesome. This gun is very versitle, you can change the handle to fit your hand and you can change the caliber size very easily. I reccomend this gun!!!

I bought the P 250 today while looking for another P 228. Apparently the 228 has been dropped from Sig’s arsenal.

I like everything I see so far but haven’t shot it yet. I do not like their failure to include an additional magazine. It is so new I cannot find a magazine for sale. I have several holsters for the P 228 and the softer ones also fit the P 250

I bought a p250 9mm several months ago and it is absolutely my favorite CC firearm. I’ve but around 1,000 rounds through this gun in the last 6 months or so and every bit of the Sig reliability has held true. This is my 2nd Sig and I look forward to adding another to my collection very soon.
Pros: Compact, lightweight, Dependable, Inexpensive (by Sig standards), Easy to disassemble and clean, Accurate out of the box
Cons: Not much availability for parts/accessories (Sig designed this as a modular system but still waiting on all the parts).

Okay, Where do I start. I had my mind set on a M and P until I went to Sig. The Gun itself runs circles around a S and W. I bought the 40 cal in which really didn’t matter due to the fact that the gun is fully Interchangeable. Unless of course u want a certain caliber. Me choosin a 40 cal but anywho. In seconds you can fully change the caliber size down to a 9mm, 357 or up to a 45 cal. Each come in there own kit. I specifically have the Sig Sauer P250 Compact 40 caliber Handgun and man does it have some Cahones. This gun is meant to protect your life and the life of others. I can’t really recommend to go out all day everyday and shoot this pistol. Pretty tough to find retention holsters for it in gun stores. I just try to stay offline so I can actually size or fit tmy gun to any tactical equipment or mags and holsters. Also available in full size and subcompact. Don’t get any other gun but a Sig and especially the series with all the
interchangeable kit. NO JOKE!!!

I started off with the p 250 twosome in .40 cal. My first SIGS and my first DAO pistol, they came in a full size and sub compact. First trip to the range the full size was spot on, tight groups and after a few rounds i was also excited with the results of the sub compact, in all I was very happy with my choice to go build my P 250 arsenal. My first choice was the .45 in a compact, this way I would have all three sizes of grips and I could choose different calibers for the correct frame. received the grip and .45 kit and excitedly tried to put it together, I foUnd that I could not get the slide on the frame and after many attempts called Sig Sauer the next day. I got James on the phone and he informed my the I needed a different take down lever and O-ring, why wasn’t I informed of this when I purchased the kit? ten days later I got the package from SIG, again hurriedly unpacked and sat down to pit my new .45 together. I got it put together but now the slide was real difficult to pull back and when I did get it back it would not return with out some serious coaxing on my part. Called James again and again and again and a lot more, left messages and nothing. Called the company that I purchased all the Sigs from and canceled the .357 kit and told him if I cannot use this .45 for him to return my money and he could have his kit. He called sig and four days later James called and told me I would have to send the the entire .45 to Sig for repair, this also rendered both of my .40’s inoperable also and that sucked!!!
When I asked the turn around time I was told 2 weeks, yea I have a lot of confidence in that!!! So now instead of three SIGS, I don’t have any operable SIGS and I went from a high to less than excited with SIG SAUER so far

Thanks for the info on the twosom in 45 cal. We all get a bad apple sometimes but in reality do you like to have the flexability to change grips. From small to large depending on the need and requirement

That is one of the reasons I began with the Sig p250 series. Flexibility and a less expensive way to own multiple platforms with multiple calibers. I am sure that the issues with the 45 will be resolved and I can continue to expand my P250 series. I still live the way all of the pistols shoot and I have had zero problems with accuracy right out of the box. It is my belief that the extractor is the problem and my next visit to the range will confirm this hypotheses. Highly recommend the Sig twosum .45 cal. And Curio arms on gunsamerica had the best price by over $100.00 respond back if u want their contact info.

i purchased a sig p250 some months back and have been to a pistol range maybe 3-4 times. Made a attempt to zero the weapon only to find out it shoots way off target. No matter what approach I used without tampering with the sights I get no results.I am retired Military and have used the colt 1911 for years also the 9mm beretta. So shooters technique is not the problem what is your suggestion.
sincerely Fred Balliet

I think the clue to working out this problem is spelled out right in your comments. You state you “have used the colt 1911 for years “. Also I’d be willing to bet the Beretta you’re used to is the M9 9mm, correct? The problem is your trigger pull. The Colt is a single action and the Beretta is a single/double action. I’m sure you know it’s workings but just in case- single action needs to be cocked and in a “single action” the hammer is dropped when the trigger is pulled. Likewise the Beretta being a single/double action (which can actually be used as a traditional single action) has it’s hammer cocked by the firing mechanism thus becoming single action after the first shot (unless cocked first). You’re muscle memory is waiting for the recoil way before the full cycle of a true DAO (Double action only) occurs. The P250 almost feels like a dual stage trigger and takes some getting used to (I know, I own one). I’m sure once you get used to the trigger pull difference you will become just as proficient with the Sig as you are with the Colt. Trust me, You’ll like it! 🙂

Well I have since sold all of my Sig p250s.I practiced dry firing often and enthusiastically but never felt confident enough to continue carrying the weapon system. No matter how much work I did at the range, firing from the ready position never yielded satisfactory results. I did not have the necessary confidence that if needed I could draw and fire and hit what I need to hit. I now carry the XDM .45 ands after a prp trigger I get consistent bullseyes at 50 ft, that’s right 50 ft. For me the entire experiment of the p250 twosum sounded Good but in reality the dao killed it for me.

I’m really sorry to hear that. I understand your frustration as I also had a transition period. My other pistols being Colt 1911 and Defender, Browning hipower, Walther P38, Sig 229 and Scorpion and a recent addition- Rem R1 (I like the 1911) among others. Yet my daily carry is the Sig 250 compact 45acp in a fobus. I trust both my and my family’s life with it. It’s NEVER failed me yet! But you have to be confident in your carry choice. That’s a big part of the decision. Be safe my friend, times are precarious. 🙂